I think if I were wiser and more cautious I'd be a little more reluctant to take on this topic. After all I am not a member of the trans community, nor do I know any folks who are openly transgender all that well. But being an ally is so powerful to me, it speaks volumes. It says to another beautiful human being that I may not have experienced the exact same things as you but I see you, I hear you and I feel your pain. White allies helped a great deal with the civil rights movement by setting a precedent of integrated activism and by helping to humanize black people to white moderates. And the truth of the matter is is that allies have been and always will be a critical part of any human rights struggle.
Also its natural in this day and age to be held back by a fear offending people without realizing it. But just like last time a Netflix documentary got me and I'm itching to dive in on this issue.
This documentary is called Disclosure and it's primarily about the effects of media portrayals of trans people on society and their lives in particular. And it was narrated by none other than Laverne Cox, a black trans woman who is an actress and activist, best known for her role as Sophia on Netflix's Orange is the New Black. And as a black woman I appreciated that it took the time to include trans people from all walks of life and didn't take part in erasure of queer people of color which I've learned is a common thread throughout LGBTQ+ issues.
I found it particularly illuminating because it didn't just scratch the surface, it exposed issues of how trans people are portrayed in the media from many different angles. It highlighted how harmful media portrayals are in a way that I think would never ordinarily register with cisgendered people. For decades they have been the butt of every joke, have been type casted as sick, sinister, deviants. And they have been routinely talked down to and othered by people in reality and talk shows. And its all fun and games for cis people who will never directly feel the effects of such misrepresentation. Not only does it contribute to self loathing that a lot of trans youth are made to feel, but also to suicidal ideation as studies show that 45% of trans people have attempted suicide. And you can imagine what can happen when that type of media is the only exposure that people have of trans folks. It makes it harder to come out to the people in your life and poisons your dealings with the outside world.
On top of that, I am scared to death for the safety of trans people every day. I don't think any minority group suffers as many hate crimes as they do currently because people still fear the unfamiliar. A difference in gender identity is seen as so radical and frightening to traditionalists that it can bring out the worst in people. And it often times makes their issues with their own masculinitely swim to the surface.
A big part of the problem is that most Americans (I'd argue) still view gender entirely through the prism of appearance. Laverne Cox talked about being laughed at and harassed just living her life in New York City early in her transition. And that shocked me for a couple of reasons: for one thing I naively thought NYC was a progressive city that was tolerant of all queer folks and that people would take time out of their day to harass a complete stranger. And that's because she was not yet perceived as a "real woman" but as a "man in a dress" by ignorant people. And this ignorance has proven to have deadly consequences.
When we see a case like Caitlyn Jenner's we sometimes forget that not everyone has Kardashian/Jenner money and may not have the funds or the insurance to pay for gender reassignment surgeries. Some have even felt forced into sex work for that very reason. And that to me emphasizes the fact that the love, dignity and respect that we show trans people should NEVER be based on their appearance. Gender is what's in your heart. And we need to beat that into people's heads and teach future generations that. Otherwise we will continue to live in a country where trans people won't be safe simply walking the streets of our cities.
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